Impact of Design Features on Pavement Response and Performance in Rehabilitated Flexible and Rigid Pavements

The primary focus of this research was to determine the effects of design and construction features, such as overlay thickness and mix type, presence of milling, and type of restoration, on pavement response and performance and to establish their importance in the prediction of future performances of rehabilitated pavements. Long-Term Pavement Performance program Specific Pavement Study (SPS)-5 and SPS-6 experiments provided information to obtain a better understanding of the effects of design and construction features on pavement response and performance of rehabilitated flexible and rigid pavements. The research findings provided guidance to identify appropriate features and rehabilitation alternatives for different pavement types and recommendations for improving data collection activities. The analyses results obtained in this study helped determine the causes of distress and helped formulate models for predicting performance of rehabilitated pavements. In addition, data from SPS-3 and SPS-4 experiments were used to determine effectiveness and timing of preventive maintenance treatments. The findings suggest that it is possible to determine significant differences between treatment alternatives with respect to pavement performance and treatment timing. Performance of rehabilitated pavement sections from SPS-5 and SPS-6 were also examined using the "Mechanistic Empirical Pavement Design Guide" and compared with the field performance. The results provide useful information about rehabilitated pavement section performance predictions and recommendations, for future model improvements.